Sandbox III: Revenge of the Sandbox

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SCP Sandbox

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The following is the condensed dossier of PoI-38792, containing pieces of documentation pertaining to various stages of their time spent as a ward of the Foundation. PoI-38792, also referred to as Dr. ██████ ███ by authorized personnel, has given consent for a copy of this data to be made available in the central Foundation archives at Level-2 clearance.

Archivist's Note: These tentative procedures were established on ██/██/████, roughly one week after PoI-38792 was brought into Foundation custody. At this time, a numerical designation had not yet been assigned to the individual.

Close-up image of SCP-XXXX's tongue. It is noted that the saliva produced by the individual takes on a distinct faint orange hue.

Item #: SCP-XXXX

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-XXXX is to be contained in a standard humanoid containment cell. All furniture within the cell is to be constructed of corrosion-resistant materials. Meals (as specified by the on-site dietitian) are to be provided daily via delivery drone. Additional amenities, including leisure books and snack food, may be provided for good behavior as considered appropriate by the research team assigned to SCP-XXXX.

SCP-XXXX is to receive daily academic instruction for four hours each weekday, from a rotating roster of six Level-2 research personnel assigned to the case as short-term tutors. Curriculum and individual work assignments are to follow Australian grade level standards, with supplementary elective activities (e.g., music, creative writing, figure drawing) offered at researcher discretion. College-level material may be offered when SCP-XXXX exhibits willingness to proceed with higher level education.

A Foundation psychologist is to meet with SCP-XXXX once a week at minimum, to gauge personal development and trauma recovery progress. Outside of these meetings, access to SCP-XXXX's containment cell requires Level-3 authorization and written permission from the lead researcher of the SCP-3879 project.

Protective clothing must be worn while within SCP-XXXX's containment area. A cabinet near the entrance to SCP-XXXX’s cell has been stocked with a set of corrosion-resistant suits and masks.

Archivist's Note: This partial description was written regarding PoI-38792's anomaly and history, prior to the individual's case as being judged to be low-concern and not necessitating stringent containment and the assignment of an SCP number.

Description: SCP-XXXX is a human male of Asian descent, with apparent age of 17 years. SCP-3879 demonstrates a number of atypical behaviors, including preferring to sleep at a desk rather than a bed, and spending most of its time stationed in a corner of its cell reading while curled into a fetal position.

bodily composition similar to that of nonanomalous humans

body does not appear to age

various bodily fluids contain low amounts of acidic substances

When SCP-XXXX is frightened or injured by a visible stimulus, it will reflexively spray highly concentrated gastric acid1 from its mouth in the direction of said stimulus.

possesses high level of environmental sensitivity

will often exhibit symptoms of anxiety —> high likelihood of everyday occurrences triggering the involuntary anomalous property.

However, SCP-3879 has frequently been observed attempting to redirect the acid it produces, to avoid harming people in the vicinity.

The farthest recorded distance of acid sprayed by SCP-XXXX is 6 meters. The acid itself, while chemically identical to non-anomalous gastric acid, is strong enough to corrode most organic and inorganic matter. SCP-XXXX itself reports suffering pain2 when its anomaly is triggered, stating that the stomach and throat pain makes it feel "miserable".

need to improve cooperation with Foundation research staff —> regular communication and psychotherapy

the primary requests made by SCP-XXXX for containment amenities have all been related to finishing its education —> obtain study materials to use as rewards

SCP-XXXX seems to respect its tutors the most compared to other staff it interacts with —> adjust roster of staff assigned to SCP-XXXX case

Addendum—Discovery: Upon initial Foundation acquisition, SCP-XXXX identified itself as ██████ ███, an international (foreign exchange) student enrolled at ██████ High School of Melbourne, Australia. SCP-XXXX previously had attended █ other high schools, never remaining at one site for more than three months. School behavioral records indicated that while a diligent and well-mannered student, SCP-XXXX found difficulty making friends and was frequently a target of bullying.

SCP-XXXX's history of school transfers was noted to correspond exactly to frequent incident reports of unusual injury occurring in several different Melbourne high schools from ██/██/████ to ██/██/████. All cases involved student victims with bodily injuries exhibiting corrosion of various degrees. The most recent incident involved the death of a female student, with the local media falsely attributing the accident to have been the result of an emotional dispute between SCP-XXXX and the victim.

During the location transfer from his host family's residence to a nearby Foundation site, SCP-XXXX was noticeably taciturn and refused to respond verbally to communication. The single exception was thanking personnel when provided food to eat during the journey.

Archivist's Note: The following journal entry was written by PoI-38792 on ██/██/████, upon his initial containment. PoI-38792 had requested that a small notebook and mechanical pencil be returned to him for continuing his diary.

██/██/████

I was taken to a humanoid chamber by a secret organization after I killed my █████████. Here is real cold, and the unease of the unknown makes me feel a lot of pressure. Hate new environment. I could feel my nerves tensing to a critical point, and a little more stimulation will make me spout that disgusting acid.

I feel nothing but blank now. After making such a big mistake, I can never go back to school. I wish my friend were still there. He always had more ideas than me. I'm more inflexible than him, I admit. Although we were always bullied by others for various reasons, we could always have a good time in the absence of those nuisances. His parents were also gentle, so were mine. Maybe they were the driving force that kept me alive. Now that all the ties about them are broken, I [the remainder of the page shows water damage, and the writing is blurred]

I don't know what people here want to do to me. I just hope they can minimize the pain I have to experience while I'm dying if they are going to kill me. I can do nothing but squatting in the corner to get a sense of security before they take further action on me.

Archivist's Note: Due to PoI-38792's emotional state affecting the manifestation of their anomaly, regular interviews were implemented in lieu of experimental testing. The individual was noted to prefer conversing in English, though that is not their native language.

Interview Log 38792-1:

Interviewed: PoI-38792

Interviewer: Dr. █████

Foreword: This is the first interview log involving PoI-38792, conducted in its containment chamber. The interview occurred shortly after the entity was transferred into Foundation care.

<Begin Log, 9:26 AM>

Dr.█████: Good morning, ██████.

[PoI-38792, seated at the chamber's desk, visibly startles. A spray of orange-colored liquid is expelled from its mouth towards Dr.█████. Dr.█████ immediately steps to the side to avoid the spray.]

PoI-38792: What do you want, lady? What do you want?! You frightened me! I'm really fed up! Now I'm completely a monster! I can't get along with anybody anymore! You understand?!

Dr.█████: Calm down, please. I just want to ask you some questions.

PoI-38792: Calm down? Oh, yeah. I used to be a calm one, but that didn't work for me! You know?! No matter I transferred to which school, I would still be bullied! And then the person who always hurt others in the school turned into me! I started to do so, even I was very reluctant! I just wanted to study!

Dr.█████: That sounds bad.

PoI-38792: It is! When I watched those students being burned by what I did… and screaming, I felt I was about to, to crash. I bet this sense of guilt will follow me through my life, especially the one to █████████.

Dr.█████: █████████?

PoI-38792: My first love in a new school. Girlfriend? And she is… the first person I killed.

Dr.█████: I see. So why did you kill her?

PoI-38792: Why should I tell you? Are you the police?

Dr.█████: No, but…

PoI-38792: God, it's all in a mess! You don't have the reason to know my story! GET OUT! Don't make me spray you again!

<End Log, 9:28 AM>Note: PoI-38792 is more suspicious and irritable than I thought. Direct attempts to communicate may not achieve good results. I think we should first let it know who we are. Maybe provide a Foundation care manual in its reading material.—Dr.█████

Archivist's Note: A series of progress reports were compiled for POI-38792 for each week during initial transition into its temporary containment housing. Notable records detailing "snapshots" of its typical behavior have been included as part of the dossier.

POI-38792 has readily adjusted to its new quarters, but seems to become agitated when personnel enter its rooms without protective gear. POI-38792 had taken to spending most of its time away from the main door, instead preferring to remain near the restroom area. Later questioning indicated that 38792 did not want to be accidentally startled and felt anxious when hearing the door chime announcing a visit. Upon being provided with a routine schedule of researcher visits, POI-38792 began to move around more freely in its quarters.

Per hidden camera surveillance, 38792 is observed engaging in several daily routines. Each morning, it will rearrange the study materials on its desk to reflect the order of tutors who will visit, or the order it intends to complete its coursework for the day. The book of "brain teaser" puzzles 38792 requested is kept on the floor next to its bed, and read once daily before 38792 sleeps. The Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP handheld game system presented for good behavior is used sparingly.

38792 appears to save all the unused stiff paper napkins from its delivered meals, using them to fold a modular origami swan. Origami paper has been added to the list of amenities provided for good behavior. 38792 has also begun keeping a set of notecards with questions about study material to ask personnel members when they visit during tutoring sessions.

Archivist's Note: POI-38792 continued to express a preference for conversing in English when interviewed, stating a desire to improve their grasp of the second language.

Interview Log 3879-█:

Interviewed: POI-38792

Interviewer: Dr.█████

Foreword: After several weeks of interaction with Foundation personnel, SCP-3879 no longer exhibited violent reactions and requested to speak with Dr.█████ again. SCP-3879 was observed to have spent additional time reading and requesting provided material specifically focused on biology and the history of magic and curses.

<Begin Log, 10:25 AM>

Dr.█████: Good morning. How are you today?

POI-38792: A little better than before, but still terrible.

Dr.█████: I see. You look a little better, at least.

POI-38792: I must apologize for my rudeness before, Dr.█████. I feel you may be the one who is more helpful than the police. They won't even believe what happened to me. I really need your help.

Dr.█████: All right, don't worry. Can I ask you some questions first? I have to know you well before helping you. You can tell me the truth, even if it sounds unrealistic.

POI-38792: Okay, it's reasonable. I'm ready.

Dr.█████: Good, then… were you born with your abnormality?

POI-38792: No, it… it was a mistake caused by my friend and me.

Dr.█████: Can you be more specific?

POI-38792: Well, this is a long story. Would you mind me to narrate it?

Dr.█████: Go ahead.

POI-38792: I used to be a normal student as my friend. Emmm… except we were always bullied at school. We were both transferred once together. I told you about that before. You know? Some students of my age always have various reasons to trouble others. We tried different ways to integrate, but we were always excluded. It happened for about two years until my friend could not bear that. He decided to take revenge. I strongly disagree, but I still asked him what he wanted to do, and he said he was going to use…. he said it was called "black magic".

Dr.█████: What was the black magic?

POI-38792: You can't really believe that, right? I thought he was just joking as well. Although he was really keen on everything about magic, I didn't think I need to be worried because everyone at school was told magic was just an imaginary thing…

Dr.█████: I understand. How did black magic cause your abnormality?

POI-38792: Alright…I found my friend got many kinds of strange things from different sources. Collecting and he was bullied because of it. He was always trying to do chemistry like that, and he always kept lots of stuff in his room, you see? He told me that it would be successful after he ate that mixture. Of course, I wouldn't let him do such a stupid thing. When I stopped him from swallowing that disgusting thing, it had a strong reaction in the container on my friend's hand. I saw it turned into an orange liquid and it sprayed on my face…I can't remember what happened later. I only know when I was awake again, I was almost cover in the orange liquid. And my friend was missing.

Dr.█████: So that was when you had the new abnormality?

[POI-38792 ignored Dr.█████ and kept on talking about its experience.]

POI-38792: I was afraid when I found he was gone. When I found myself almost unhurt, but started vomiting… ewww, I really don't want to recall how I left my friend's house…

[POI-38792 begins to cry. The tears produced are tinted a slight orange.]

POI-38792: I know that! Hey, Dr.█████, don't you want to know why I killed █████████? It's so "funny"! Ha! We loved each other. We studied together. We were going to go to college together. Then she kissed me. Then I vomited because I was so surprised, and then her head was melted! That's what it was! I'm really fed up with the daily death cycle of being frightened, vomiting and hurting others. I don't know what I have done wrong. Can you and your other doctors help me?

Dr.█████: How do you want us to help?

POI-38792: I'm not going to make it hard for you. I have been looking for ways to stop this, but I'm not cut out for this alone. Maybe you can help me crack it. You seem to be good at dealing with things that can't be explained by science, right? Teach me. I will learn it all by myself, if I have teachers. I really want to return to normal life, so please!

Archivist's Note: The day this particular journal entry was written, POI-38792 made a sudden request for a variety of additional reading material from the Foundation medical library. The majority of the texts requested focused on biological and psychological studies regarding stress and anxiety.

██/██/████
After knowing that their purpose was not killing me, I was relieved. The one who calls herself Dr. █████ seems to be my head often and she's such a warm lady. She has been helping me much in finishing my study and changing me back to a normal person with her colleagues. Though the results of the second one are very small, she always comforts me "there will be a way out".

There is a very good news for me: I rarely spray the damn acid again. Sometimes I almost forget that I have this abnormal nature until my body is severely painful due to the erosion of acid. I feel this place is not as cold as when I first arrived. In other words, I seem to have adapted to life here. Even though I still feel here is a bit strange and often miss my family and friends.

I also dreamed about █████████ last night. It was not the first or fifth or tenth time I had her in my dream. I recalled her face, and I felt it was a bit like Dr. █████. I still remember that day and I cannot do it over.

I used to feel scared when I would wake up from a nightmare and there would be drops of acid on the pillow. I am still scared, but I think I can learn how to get better. I believe I can get better. I want to get better.

Archivist's Note: With the progression of its studies, POI-38792 was noted to make fewer requests each month than in previous times, stating contentment with its current diet, lifestyle, and level of interaction with staff. POI-38792 was also noted to greet its instructors at the door of its containment cell at the start of weekday lessons, rather than waiting at its desk for them to enter.

As of ██/██/████, POI-38792 is rapidly becoming more fluent in English, and has completed study material for several university-tier science courses. Discussion is underway regarding allowing POI-38792 limited access to Foundation research labs pertaining to anomalous biology, in the hopes of it finding a means to neutralize its harmful effects. 38792 has preemptively agreed to share all of its notes, research designs, and experimental data with Foundation personnel.

Archivist's Note:

Archivist's Note:

A Foundation progress document for the last few years (implies a time skip between documents) noting the student's accomplishments, including finishing the Foundation's high school program and university equivalent, and starting his own research. Maybe also note that the student keeps in regular contact with his family under the guise of attending a private university on research scholarship or something.

Archivist's Note:

Archivist's Note:

Last Foundation progress document, noting that the research done by the student ultimately had no workable results, but the student is now a respected counselor for young children and teenager Persons of Interest. Maybe end on an emotional note, like the student's request to visit his friend's grave or the student asking that part of his Foundation salary/stipend be given to his parents, because he lives pretty comfortably on-Site and doesn't need the extra money. Also maybe a bulletin board for all the drawings and cards the PoIs he watches over give him.

THINGS TO REMEMBER TO DO BEFORE POSTING:
- make sure no "SCP" naming
- make sure the "it" transitions to "they" and then "he"

Zyn: Okay, so I'm going to start going through the current draft to improve the wording. I'll update this section when I'm finished with that.

Karve: Sorry for replying late. Okay, I'll see how to write an SCP formally then.

Zyn: Got caught up with staff work on the forums. The containment procedures have been revised; I'll work on polishing up the rest of the piece tomorrow.

Karve: Thanks. You've had a long day. We can have a discussion about what should be added after you fix the text.

Zyn: Okay, I've finished the containment and description edits. I wanted to check with you before I go through the addenda, since I've started incorporating some of my own ideas into the description.

First off, I looked around and it seems like the idea of anomalous people feeling lonely and wanting to be normal is a pretty common story concept for SCP articles. Personally, I feel like SCP-xxxx would have a stronger story if he wasn't just a stereotypical kid that didn't fit in. I want to give the audience a more detailed character, with goals and plans for the rest of his life besides just being able to fit in at school.

So we still have the guy being bullied with his friend, but maybe it was because he took school very seriously (even though he didn't get the best grades, he tried his hardest) and didn't know how to interact with people outside of the classroom? Also maybe he studied really hard so that he could spend more time with his teachers doing extra schoolwork, and his teachers would look after him? And then when his friend tried the black magic part, he got really upset that everyone, especially his teachers, were scared of him? And all he wants to do is finish his education and maybe try to research a cure for his acid spit?

I wanted to write some containment procedures about the Foundation tutoring SCP-xxxx, so I added that part in. What do you think?

If you don't like this idea, let me know and we can figure out how best to proceed. If you do like the idea, do you have some ideas for SCP-xxxx's personal life that can be used for interview material, to make the character more realistic?

Also, another thought: what if SCP-xxxx was also foreign exchange student? That way, we can keep pretty much all the dialogue you've written for the interviews. I personally really like the way it sounds (even though it's not completely grammatically correct) because the wordings are very genuine, and it reminds me of how my best friend in high school spoke (she transferred to the US from Korea). It also makes the dialogue really shine, since it's not standard English the way other interviews on the mainsite are.

Karve: I like the new idea about SCP-xxxx. It makes the character more real and particular. It is true that some students are bullied because of their hard work. This sometimes involves race(Asian students).

And thanks for improving the containment procedures. This makes me realize what kind of language I should use while writing.

In fact, I used to position SCP-xxxx as an international student. I got rid of this idea because I was not sure whether the setting was useful, but now it seems to be a good one. SCP-xxxx is indeed a frank guy, but his experience has weighed down his real personality. The first interview record shows his suspicions and anxieties arising from his long life in the "darkness". The second was the state after he had unloaded his preparedness. Although his narration was still a little disorder because of his mental problem.

And could you teach me how to add a picture? I'm really poor at using the tools of editing on this page. I have a picture which might can be regarded as a photo of SCP-xxxx in my local album (It is just a feature of a boy's mouth and he is sticking his tongue out).

Zyn: Okay, I'll continue revising the rest of the article tomorrow, with the new ideas in mind.

For adding a picture, scroll to the bottom of the page, where you see the options (Edit, Tags, History, etc.). Click "files". Upload the image there (make sure the name doesn't have any spaces in it) and put the image name in the coding I've added above. Replace "ImageName.jpg" with the name of the image you uploaded.

Karve: OK, I have uploaded the picture. I didn't show the whole face of him, is this all right?

Zyn: I think it works. We'll leave it to the reviewers to decide if it's a good addition. Got caught up at work today, so I'll try to get to edits tomorrow. Sorry for the wait!

Karve: That's all right. Sorry for my informal sentences in the draft. I actually seldom write things so rigorously. But I do have some new ideas about SCP and I think they can be good ones, SCP-xxxx is just one of them.

Zyn: Okay, the entire piece is edited. I still have a couple things I'm deciding about, like making the interviews different from just "explains all the answers" storytelling, but I think it's pretty solid now. Was there anything else you wanted to add for the story? Maybe a name for SCP-xxxx? I feel like the doctor would want to call him by his name to build trust.

Karve: So…how about just block the name with █?

Zyn: That works. How long should the name be? Did you have anything in mind for it?

Also, are you ready to ask for feedback? I can start bringing the draft to the IRC chat to see what people think.

Karve: How about ██████ ███? It seems to be English first name with Asian last name?
Sure. I think SCP-xxxx is almost ready for more comments.

Zyn: Okay, updated! Unfortunately, I'm going to be a bit busy over the next few days, so I won't be able to work on the draft as much. Would you be willing to make a new forum thread in the Drafts and Critiques forum for this? I can still check the thread and answer the sandbox, but I won't be able to sit down and do thorough writing until maybe the weekend. I plan on bringing the draft to the IRC chat around that time as well.

Please let me know if this is okay, and if you have any questions about using the forums! Also, feel free to send me a wikidot message if I'm ever slow to reply to this page. I have so many things going on every day that it can be hard for me to remember them.

Karve: Okay, I made a new forum thread in the Drafts and Critiques forum. And someone replied. Here it is.

Zyn: Excellent! Thanks for making the thread. I'll make edits to follow presently, and then try to bring this to the chat sometime this week. If all goes well, I think you can post it to the mainsite soon.

Zyn: Okay, showed up in chat a little late and only got one review, from someone who wasn't totally interested in the idea but didn't hate it either. I'll try to make it to chat earlier in the day to ask for more reviews. I've made a couple changes to the draft in response to the earlier feedback.

I've also started compiling a list of people who have provided reviews, which you should post in the discussion thread for the article when it is mainlisted.

Zyn: Okay, have gotten a couple reviews. Overall response is lukewarm to positive. I think it's ready to post. While it won't be an immediate +100, I think it stands a good chance of staying at a steady positive rating.

Zyn: I'm here and standing by. If you're not ready to post today, we can defer to another time. Just let me know what works for your schedule.

Person of Interest Dossier / content from the SCP article [already done in SCP article]
First journal entry from the student, about how he feels being in a humanoid chamber
First interview from the student [already done in SCP article]
First Foundation progress document
Second interview from the student [already done in SCP article]
More journal logs, the student adjusts to life at the Foundation Site
Second Foundation progress document (maybe from a year or so after?)
Some journal logs, the student figures out what he wants to do with his future
A Foundation progress document for the last few years (implies a time skip between documents) noting the student's accomplishments, including finishing the Foundation's high school program and university equivalent, and starting his own research. Maybe also note that the student keeps in regular contact with his family under the guise of attending a private university on research scholarship or something.
Journal logs, the student realizes he's never going to be normal again, but he's come to peace with it
Last Foundation progress document, noting that the research done by the student ultimately had no workable results, but the student is now a respected counselor for young children and teenager Persons of Interest. Maybe end on an emotional note, like the student's request to visit his friend's grave or the student asking that part of his Foundation salary/stipend be given to his parents, because he lives pretty comfortably on-Site and doesn't need the extra money.
I'd like there to be a feeling of a happy ending here.

Footnotes

1. A digestive fluid produced by the stomach, composed of hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, and sodium chloride.

2. Currently, it is believed that SCP-3879's internal organs do not suffer lasting damage from its anomaly.